How is private medical insurance controlled?
An industry Code of Practice
Selling private medical insurance comes under the ABI Code of Practice
covering selling general insurance and other guidelines which cover
private medical insurance. The code and other guidelines cover training,
face-to-face and phone selling, as well as standards of documents
and handling complaints.
Your application form
Your application form is a very important document. In fact, it
forms the basis of your contract with your insurance company. Always
fill it in fully and accurately. If you don't, your insurance company
may refuse to pay your claim and could even cancel your policy.
Absolute confidentiality
By law all insurance companies have to treat personal information,
especially medical details, with absolute confidentiality. Totally
anonymous statistical information is sometimes given to outside
organisations carrying out research.
A formal procedure for handling complaints
Most insurance companies have their own complaints procedures in
place, so if you have a problem with any part of your cover, speak
to your insurance company first. If you are not satisfied with the
way in which your complaint is handled, you can contact either the
Insurance Ombudsman Bureau, or the Personal Insurance Arbitration
Service (depending on which one your insurance company uses). These
services are free and you can find contact details at the end of
this guide.
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